Godnight, Goodnight
by IxtaMarie
Summary: As a father, how could you let you little girl marry the Fire Lord, the man who was responsible for the murder of your wife, the almost compleate annihalation of your people?  Hakoda's veiws on his daughter's engagement to the Fire Lord.


Disclaimer: Oh how I wish I owned Avatar: The Last Airbender…

Being a father was a hard job back then. Your beloved wife was murdered, leaving you to pick up the pieces, to care for your two children. It was a tough job, but it was worth it. You loved them.

Several years later, you decide it is time. Your children are old enough to take care of themselves. At last, you go to fight in the war that killed your wife and ravaged your village. You do it for your children. You want them to be safe.

You run in to them occasionally, they are helping the Avatar, traveling the globe. Your son breaks you out of prison, and you help your children and their rag-tag group of friends take on the fire nation. For a few weeks, you are a family again.

But soon you are separated.

Eventually the war ends. Within weeks you are back at the chunk of ice you call home. Your children run to you, embrace you, crying and laughing and smiling like the rest of the village.

Oh, spirits you have missed them. They look ten years older. Your son –once a foolish, awkward, gangly boy- has grown into a confident and self-possessed young man. He is an excellent warrior. And your daughter… she is beautiful. So much like her mother. You have a feeling she will be beating off suitors with a stick.

Her water bending skills have been honed, and she is now a master, she informs you later. You smile and tell her she will be welcomed in the healing tents. You can tell that is not what she wants to hear.

Later, looking at their older faces, you remember with fondness how your son had wanted to grow up to become a big, fierce warrior, a dream he had now reached. Your daughter had wanted a fairytale ending, like in the stories she heard.

A month after your return, a large Fire Nation vessel nears your shores. You call out for your warriors, but your son stops you, tells you it is the Fire Lord's flagship. He is here for purely diplomatic reasons.

The Fire Lord, it turns out, is very good friends with your children. He goes hunting with your son, and goes on long walks through the frozen tundra with your daughter.

You do not like these supposed walks. The pair always come back breathless with mussed hair and rumpled cloths, their cheeks pink and rosy. You demand your daughter stop; tell her the whole village is talking, but stubborn as always, she does not listen.

Sighing, you wonder what on earth you are going to do with her.

One night, your daughter asks to talk to you in private. She has been acting odd ever since the Fire Lord showed up. Sneaking glances at you, whispering to her brother behind your back… You were suspicious.

So you were not surprised at all when she said, it's about the Fire Lord. It was he next thing she said that shocked you, rattled you to your core. Dad, we are engaged to be married.

How dare she! How dare she even _dream_ of marrying that man! Did she forget that that _bastard_ was responsible for the death of her mother, the nearly total eradication of her people, and nearly 100 years of war?

You don't realize you spoke your thoughts until she is glaring death at you, reminding you that he is _different,_ he is not one of those _monsters_! He _helped_ the world! He brought _peace_! He was a close personal friend of the _Avatar_!

You do not care, you bellow, voice echoing in the small icy dome you call home. He killed your mother and your people, and thousands of others. He is responsible for every single one of the deaths suffered at the Fire Nation's hands. You will not have your little girl anywhere near him.

She looks at you, indignance burning in her eyes. In a deadly whisper, she informs you that she loves him, and she is going to marry him whether you like it or not. Then, she is gone from your tent and running through the tundra.

You stay up all night trying to comprehend how she could love him. What did she see in him? He is a coldhearted monster. He is a murderer. What could a bright light such as your daughter see in his black soul? Suddenly it hits you: he must have threatened her or hurt her in some way.

Bright and early the next morning, you go confront him. The fire bender is sitting in his tent, at his desk. Your little girl is sleeping in his bed; a pile of firs and blankets lay on the floor.

You run to her, grab her, gathering her in your arms, and demand to know if he hurt or threatened her. You swear to the spirits, you will rip his damn head off. Your daughter blinks, then rage floods her face.

He never hurt me! He would never hurt me! She yells. He loves me, and I love him, is that too hard for you to understand? I don't need your approval; I don't need anyone's approval! No one can stop us!

She is furious, raging on, barely making sense. You have never seen her so livid. The Fire Lord glares at you, then reaches out and pulls her into a tight embrace, smothering her anger. Curled in to his chest, your daughter starts sobbing, burying herself in his robes. You look away in disgust; your little girl should not be touching that monster.

Your little girl should be married to a water tribe warrior of your choosing. She should put her talent to good use in the healing tents. She should spend her days cooking and cleaning and tanning hides and raising children. She should stay in the South Pole.

Wide blue eyes stare at you in shock. But dad, she says so quiet and innocent –as it it's the most obvious thing in the world –that's not what I want. I could never be some devoted domestic to a man I never loved. I could not just use my bending for healing. This is no longer the life for me, dad. I have to go.

And with that, she gets up and walks out of the Fire Lord's tent as if in a trance. The fire bender looks over at you. I am sorry that you do not approve of me, he murmurs, but I love your daughter very much. I would never –I could never- do anything to hurt her. I would never let _anything_ hurt her.

She is the most important thing in my world, he continues. She is the sun, the moon, and the stars. She is the ocean and the air. She is my inner fire. I could not survive without her.

You look deep into the eyes of the fire bender. He speaks the truth. But you are no fool; you are not so quick to trust him. He could still hurt her physically, emotionally, accidentally. You do not trust this man with your little girl. You could never trust a fire child with your little girl.

You look back upon your clumsy memories many a year later. It is the first time you have seen your daughter since that last fight. You did not attend the wedding. You were invited, but you were still too blind, too angry to see. You know that your dislike, your actions hurt her. She has long since forgiven you; she is far too kind.

You smile at your new grandchild –a lovely little bundle of joy- and make bets with the Fire Lord's uncle as to whether it will be a fire or a water bender.

Being there, at in the capitol of the enemy, you can see how much has changed. For your daughter and for the world. You can see what a wonderful Fire Lady your daughter makes. You have heard rumors, stories, but you did not know how true they were until now. You can see how in love the two are.

And you are happy your baby girl finally got her fairytale ending.

A/N: This did not turn out anything like what I thought it would. Alas, that's what happens when you are simultaneously writing/watching SNL. I'm lazy, so I'm just posting it how it is. Maybe sometime I'll have some spare time and I can change it up. Title derived from the Maroon 5 song Goodnight, Goodnight. Also, reviews/constructive criticisms are loved!


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